How Much is a Living Trust? How Much is a Will? How Much does an Estate Plan run? We get a variations of this question – a lot. As much as we’d love to give you a simple answer, our response is the typical “lawyer” answer: “It depends…”. We can’t tell you without talking to you about…
Continue reading…Category: LGBTQ Planning
The 3 Types of Lawyers to Consider for Your Estate Planning…
In today’s complex legal environment, it’s important to understand that all lawyers do not specialize (or even practice) in all of the various areas of the law! When it comes to estate planning, it’s important to understand how “specialized” your legal representation is when handling your family + legacy. This week, I break down the (3)…
Continue reading…The Three Types of Lawyers to Consider for Your Estate Planning
Contrary to popular belief, all lawyers do not specialize in all areas of law! When it comes to estate planning, it is important to understand how “specialized” your legal representation is when handling your legacy. This week, I have broken down three types of representation common to the estate planning arena. #1 – “Jack of…
Continue reading…Why I’m Convinced that Estate Planning is a Women’s Issue
Estate planning is important for both sexes, but the pitfalls of failing to plan simply affect women, particularly mothers, much more than men– both in terms of raw numbers (we live longer) and the all-too-common female burden of carrying the entire family’s mental workload. As a group, the facts are: women live longer than men, earn less than…
Continue reading…6 Reasons Why Hiring an Estate Planning Lawyer Beats Doing-It-Yourself
DIY Will?? In the information age, you can pretty much learn how to do just about any household task- watch a video on YouTube to learn how to build a bookshelf, read one of the thousands of DIY blogs to learn how to install a sprinkler set, or refinish a dresser. With the almost unlimited…
Continue reading…Important Estate Planning Considerations for LGBTQ Individuals & Families
Most people, regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation, should make an estate plan. However, same-sex couples/families and LGBTQ individuals may have more to gain from making an estate plan than others because of the ever-changing nature of the laws surrounding LGBTQ issues. An estate plan can also help clarify the nature their relationship…
Continue reading…Should I Do My Estate Planning Online???
Today’s technology allows us to access a gamut of information from the comfort of our homes or by simply pressing a quick button from our smartphones. We can even do our shopping by simply asking our “virtual assistants”, like Amazon’s Alexa or Google Play, to place an order. However, this quick and easy access to…
Continue reading…Tax Savings Strategies to Implement NOW to Lower Your 2019 Tax Bill
The TCJA (Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) virtually doubled the standard deduction (for personal returns). For 2019, the standard personal deductions are: $12,200 – Single (or married filing separately) $24,400 – Married, filing jointly $18,350 – Head of Household You can find info for 2018 here. If you’re used to itemizing your deductions- the new…
Continue reading…Buying Vs. Renting Commercial Real Estate: What Are The Tax Benefits?
By: Shu Saito, CEO, Allfilters.com – Forbes, YEC CommunityVoice, Link While I’m not an accountant and don’t have any professional training in this field, I do have extensive experience as a business owner. Additionally, I would like to think that I have an advanced understanding of accounting and finances in general. So, while you should always consult…
Continue reading…Trusts In The Age Of Trump: Time To Re-Engineer Your Estate Plan
By Ashlea Ebeling, Forbes Staff Link to original article here The federal tax overhaul just doubled the amount of wealth you can pass to heirs estate-tax-free–without using any trusts or planning gimmicks. Yet rather than looking for a new specialty, top trust lawyers are positively giddy about the opportunities created by the law President Trump…
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